Free Republic

Anti-coalition forces and former regime elements should "lay down their arms and embrace the future," the commander of U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq said in a briefing from Baghdad today. "The former regime is never going to come back," said Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, commander of Combined Joint Task Force 7. "We're going to be relentless in the pursuit of these targets. We're going to capture or kill them, as is our mission. Those that remain at large, and given the pace that we're moving toward sovereignty, it's time for them to lay down their arms and become...

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq said Wednesday the number of attacks against American troops in Iraq is increasing. During a press conference, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez said the average of 20 to 25 attacks daily had increased over the last three weeks "to a peak of 35 attacks a day." He did not elaborate. Ambush bombers struck Wednesday in the center of Baghdad and in the tense Sunni Muslim area west of the capital, as the commander of American forces reported an increase in attacks against occupation troops. The Baghdad attack caused light casualties, a...